Modification Nouns

Modification Nouns

A modifier is a word/phrase/clause which modifies other words in a sentence.

We often use two nouns together to show that one thing is a part of something else:

• the village church

• the car door

• the kitchen window

• my coat pocket

• London residents

• In these examples, the first noun is called a noun modifier.

Be careful! We do not use a possessive form for these things. We do NOT talk about:

• the car's door

• the kitchen's window

• the chair's leg

We can use noun modifiers to show what something is made of:

• a gold watch

• a leather purse

• a metal box

We often use noun modifiers with nouns ending in –er: 

• an office worker

• a jewellery maker

• a potato peeler

We use measurements, age or value as noun modifiers:

• a thirty-kilogram suitcase

• a two-minute rest

• a five-thousand-euro platinum watch

• a fifty-kilometre journey

We often use nouns ending in -ing as noun modifiers:

• a shopping list   

• a swimming lesson   

• a walking holiday   

• a washing machine

Sometimes we find more than two nouns together:

• London office workers

• grammar practice exercises